Howie Long's Career Comes Full Circle in Charlestown

Howie Long -- a Charlestown native, well-known pitchman, football commentator, and former defensive lineman for the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders -- was in town last week to accept a plaque from the Football Hall of Fame honoring his success as a part of their Hometown Plaque program with Allstate Insurance.

A childhood member of the Charlestown Boys and Girls Club and a contributor to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America as an adult, Long himself chose the as the place he wanted to receive his plaque.

Four speakers preceded Long, including Greg Jackson, executive director of the Club, George Veras, CEO of the Football Hall of Fame, Josh Kraft, President of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, and Mark LaNeve, executive VP and chief marketer at Allstate. All spoke glowingly of the honoree, especially LaNeve, who described Long as "Not just a Hall of Fame football player, but a Hall of Fame human being."

The highlight, though, was Howie's speech, in which he reflected on his childhood and the influences of the town and Boston. As he said:

I'm extremely proud that the plaque program is starting here today, in Charlestown, where it all started for me.  Where I first really fell in love with sports, watching the Bruins, the Celtics, the Red Sox and the Patriots.

I remember being in my Aunt Edie's kitchen on the ten-inch TV with a coathanger, and channel UHF, this is pre-cable, pre-satellite, all that stuff, and living in dying with the winter loss, like most Boston fans. Playing on Albion Place, playing football on a patch of grass on Rutherford Avenue next to Hood's Hill, Eden Street Park, Bunker Hill, and as, as was mentioned here, at the Boys Club.

It's a treat to be back here. It's been a long and great journey for me, as a professional athlete, through my association with the National Football League, and in many ways it's appropriate that it comes full circle.  And there's been many forks in the road, but I think today in many ways the journey is complete for me, and it's great to be back here, and I'm thrilled to be a part of this program, and bring this plaque back to Charlestown.

Besides being the first recipient of a plaque, Long is also a spokesman for the entire plaque program with Allstate and the Hall of Fame, which intends to recognize every living Hall of Famer with a plaque in their hometown.

Recognition Charlestown-style included treats and beverages donated by Zume's for all those in attendance, a Charlestown Townies t-shirt given to Long, and enthusiastic, mostly male, fans young and old, who lined up for autographs and to get their pictures taken with Long during the meet-and-greet after his speech. Long honored requests cheerfully, and, soon after every waiting fan had gotten to say hello, left in a black SUV headed for the airport.